With most nonemergency procedures shelved for now, many health insurers are expected to see profits in the near term, but the longer view of how the coronavirus will affect them is far more complicated and could well impact what people pay for coverage next year.
Organized labor is divided over whether to support “Medicare for All.” Meanwhile, many of the Democratic presidential candidates seem unable to use the health issue to their advantage. Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call, Jennifer Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this and more. Also, for extra credit, the panelists offer their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.
Although a new state tax penalty and state financial aid motivated people to sign up for health insurance this year, Covered California is reopening enrollment for those who said they weren’t aware of them.
Gov. Gavin Newsom says the state already has a public option: Covered California, the state health insurance exchange. While there is no single definition of a public option, some health care experts say that’s a stretch.
There’s something new in this year’s Covered California open-enrollment period: Consumers are learning whether they will qualify for new state-funded financial aid. The results are mixed, with some scoring hundreds of dollars per month and others nothing.
Come Jan. 1, California will be the first state to offer financial aid to middle-class people who make too much money to qualify for federal Obamacare tax credits. And Californians will once again owe a penalty if they are uninsured.
Come Jan. 1, California will be the first state to offer financial aid to middle-class people who make too much money to qualify for federal Obamacare tax credits. And Californians will once again owe a penalty if they are uninsured.
States increasingly expect to see insurers enter or re-enter ACA marketplaces next year. That’s a critical sign that these exchanges are growing less risky for insurers despite ongoing political and legal battles over the ACA.
New enrollment in Covered California plans plunged by nearly a quarter this year compared with last year, posting a bigger drop than the federal health insurance exchange, healthcare.gov, which saw a 16 percent decrease. Officials largely blame the elimination of the tax penalty for people without insurance.
Advocates of the sweeping health law view this move by the Trump administration as its most recent act of sabotage. But not everyone views it as a mortal blow.
